Spencer Reid Extras
by LokiLove24028
Summary: Extended and additional scenes from various episodes about Spencer in Criminal Minds, like what JJ and Spencer's "date" would've been like, when Spencer had gone to Jennifer's house after Emily supposedly died, or when he babysat Henry during girls night.
1. Date With JJ

**Season 1: Episode 4**

"So what are you doing for your birthday?" Elle's voice asked from behind Spencer while they were looking through the victim's room for their newest case. Spencer turned and raised his eyebrows to watch her walk in the room, putting latex gloves on to examine the girl's things. Spencer turned back to the books he was sifting through and shrugged.

"Usually I like to celebrate with some of Vladimir Nabokov's best works and a lot of Dr. Who." he said. Birthdays were never really special to him. His mother was sometimes too confused to even remember his birthday when he was kid and he really didn't have anyone else there to care about it so he usually dismissed them as just another day.

"Fun." Elle said with a hint of sarcasm. Spencer ignored it and kept looking for anything suspicious that could lead them to find the girl who was kidnapped. "You don't party or anything like that?" she pressed on, joining in the search.

"I'm not really the partying type." Spencer explained in a matter-of-fact voice. He heard Elle go "ahhh" in the background. He knew she didn't understand why he liked what he liked, but he was perfectly content with being alone and reading and watching Dr. Who reruns.

* * *

"Hey, kid!" Spencer heard a deep voice call out to him while he was packing up at his desk. They'd just gotten back from the case they had. They'd found the girl who was kidnapped and without having anyone else killed so it was a pretty good outcome for the most part. On the plane ride home, Gideon had given Spencer tickets to the Redskins game for his birthday. When he had asked if Gideon was coming with him he'd said someone else was coming. "The only person in the world who calls him Spence" Gideon said.

Spencer was scared nearly half to death while asking JJ to go with him. He knew there'd never be anything that'd happen. She was older than him, gorgeous, and most importantly his co-worker. She seemed excited though, and he didn't have anything to worry about as it turned out. Now he was prepared to be harassed by Morgan.

"Look at you go, Man. Jennifer Jareau." Derek said, his big goofy grin on his face as he slapped Spencer on the back, jerking him forward. Reid grimaced and rubbed his shoulders, avoiding eye contact with Morgan.

"It won't be anything, Morgan. Just a one time thing." Spencer said. He could sense Derek rolling his eyes at him. He knew Morgan loved the idea of being able to pester Spencer about girls since Spence was so inexperienced, but there wasn't anything to be pestered about.

"Oh come on. Where's the fun in that?" he asked, nudging Reid in the ribs.

"Let it go, Morgan." Reid said, even though a smirk crawled up on his face. "We are just going to hang out for a bit."

"Alright, alright." Derek said, his smile still painted on his face. He tousled Spencer's hair before walking off calling,

"Happy Birthday, kid." over his shoulder. Spencer smiled and shook his head while straightening out his hair. Derek harassed him to no end, but you had to love him.

That upcoming weekend, Spencer was pulling into the parking lot of a stadium. JJ was looking out the window excitedly at the crowd around her. On the opposite hand, Spencer was nervous as hell. It wasn't even just because he was with JJ as much as he wasn't used to crowds and he had never been to a football game.

"I haven't been to a game in forever." JJ said as Spencer pulled into a parking space.

"I haven't been to one at all." Spencer said, turning off the car. Before he could get out however, JJ grabbed his arm. He turned to her with a confused frown, but she didn't explain herself. Instead she reached into her bag and pulled out a Redskins hat, giving Spencer a mischievous smile.

"Oh no..."

"Oh yes." she countered, reaching forward and fitting the hat on his head. Spencer chuckled as she put her own on and took one last look at him.

"You have to show spirit if you're going to a game. Now come on, I've got to show you this one ice cream stand. It's to die for." she said, pushing the passenger door open and stepping out into the setting sun. Spencer stepped out as well, not realizing JJ came up behind him and nudged his sides, making him shy away. He let out a short laugh.

"Are you ticklish there?" she asked when they started walking, an amused smile playing on her lips. Spencer, all nervousness aside, grinned and rolled his eyes.

"No one knows that, and I'd appreciate it if it stayed that way." he said, giving her a lopsided smile. JJ laughed, and took his wrist, pulling him along towards the stadium doors. She had her hair pulled up in a pony tail that she put through the opening in the back of her hat. She wore a Redskins T-shirt with dark jeans and converse, looking a lot more relaxed opposed to her usual work clothes.

"So have you ever been out with a girl before? Ever?" JJ asked as they joined the line to turn in their tickets. Spencer pursed his lips and thought for less than a second.

"No, never." he said. JJ frowned up at him.

"Really?"

"Why are you so surprised?" Spencer asked through a smile, knowing very well he wasn't what people would think of as the "ladies type". Reading, theorems and PhD's didn't leave time for girls anyway.

"Well whatever Morgan tries to tell you, that's only how you can get one night stands. I'll show you how to go on a real date. One that will last more than a night." JJ said as it got to her turn to hand the lady her ticket at the front gates. Spencer felt himself smile shyly.

"You will?"

"Yeah, of course." she said casually. Once they were both through the gates, JJ started her "dating tips". They walked through the hustle of people, passing stands of various foods and merchandise.

"First thing first..." JJ said, turning towards Spence as they walked through the open halls. Through cement columns, Spencer could see the football field. JJ reached over pressed a hand on his abdomen and one on his upper back, pressing gently so he straightened. "No slouching. Seem more confident." she instructed. Spencer pulled his eyebrows together and nodded, squaring his shoulders.

"But keep your cute shy thing, because it's you." she said, continuing to walk until they came near a colorful ice cream stand. She held her arm out to stop him, giving him an excited glance before turning back towards the stand.

"What do you recommend?" he asked, looking at the menu above the employees head.

"I'd definitely go with the classic chocolate and vanilla swirl." she told him. He raised his eyebrows and nodded.

"I'll go get some." he said, earning an approving look from JJ.

"There you go, you do pretty well yourself, Spence." she said. He smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, but your JJ. You're my friend and I already know you." he reminded her. She shrugged and smiled, letting him go get the ice cream.

Once they found their seats, ice cream in hand, JJ had told him a lot about what to do on a date. A lot of it was a whole lot different than what Morgan told him, but JJ was actually a girl so she was probably more credible. Overall though, Spencer was actually having a good time with her.

"And don't go for the whole yawn and reach over to put your arm around the girl. It's such an old trick and will only work with the kind of girls Morgan likes to pick up." JJ said. Reid frowned at her, genuinely confused. "What yawning reaching over trick?" he asked her. JJ looked up at him, baffled.

"For a genius there's a lot of things you don't know." she said. "Anyway, just relax. Like so..." she said, taking Spencer's wrist in her grip and wrapping his arm around her waist while they stood above their seats. Spencer raised an eyebrow at her actions, going along with it anyway. He held his arm around her as gently as possible, barely touching her. "Spence, it's okay." she said, pulling his arm closer to her. Spencer relaxed and tightened his arm around JJ, following her lead.

"There you go." she said, leaning her head into his shoulder. Spencer smiled, watching how comfortable she was. He never even expected to have a friend like her. Needless to say he felt grateful. For the rest of the night, they talked about a lot of things. He learned more about her than he had anyone else in the last five years or so. She told him about how she used to collect butterflies when she was younger and other small stories like that. She'd even listen to Spencer talk about random facts that popped up with whatever she was talking about.

"That was fun." JJ said, hopping back into the car after the game and the fireworks were over. Spencer got into the drivers seat, still smiling about the last comment JJ had made about the way Garcia and Morgan flirted. He had fun, honest fun. He'd never been so relaxed around anyone in a long, long time.

"Yeah, I never thought I'd have fun at anything that had to do with sports." he said, turning on the car. JJ chuckled and looked over at him while he was backing out.

"Thank you for taking me, Spence." she said as he got out onto the road.

"Thank you for coming. And telling me about... you know, girl stuff." he said.

Once they were at JJ's apartment complex, Spencer got out of the car to walk her up to her apartment door to make sure she was alright with getting in. At her door, JJ turned to Spencer and wrapped her arms around him, giving him a light squeeze. He was surprised at first, but hugged her back hesitantly nonetheless.

"I'll see you at work, Spence. We'll go to brunch sometime." she said, kissing his cheek. Spencer smiled, trying hard not to blush. He knew to his luck, it probably wasn't working.

"Okay. Oh, what about the hat?" he said, reaching to take it off of his head to give it back. Before he could, JJ put a hand on his own and brought it back down to his side.

"It's yours. I have way too much Redskins stuff." she said. "Thanks again, Spence." And with that, she unlocked her door and stepped inside, giving him one last smile before he turned and walked down the stairs, back out to his car. He knew JJ and him would never be more than friends but he was perfectly okay with that. He had a feeling that they were going to become close friends.

**So new side story to go along side with the Superflous series! It was strange writing about Spencer and JJ before they were such great friends**


	2. Failing Qualifications & Hotch's Beating

**Season 1: Episode 6**

"You've been quiet, kid." Morgan said as he walked through the park with Reid. It was the very same park where a sniper had shot down numerous victims only a day before. They were examining the premises to see if they could track the movements the sniper went through. They even had a cop playing as the sniper in the trunk of the car in the parking lot a number of yards away.

Spencer knew he'd been quiet on this particular case. He knew he shouldn't be so upset about not passing his gun qualifications, but he never failed anything. It was just the physical aspects he had difficulty in.

"You aren't still upset about the gun thing, are you?" Morgan asked after Reid didn't answer for a while. Spencer shrugged, continuing to walk over the uneven grassy landscape. He looked around, trying to imagine the scene of the crime before it happened. Morgan interrupted his thoughts again, though.

"Listen, Reid. You can take them again in two weeks. You'll get it eventually." Morgan said. Spencer scoffed at the ground.

"Easy for you to say. You're like the William Shakespeare of fitness and physical stuff." Spencer said, squinting against the sunlight. He could see the kids playing in his mind; people walking their dogs, families on picnics...

Morgan didn't say anything after that, but sighed instead. He clapped a hand on Spencer's back as they walked. This time it wasn't just to bug him. It was more of a reassurance. Reid was surprised he wasn't joking with him any further than he'd done with the whistle. That stupid whistle...

Spencer kneeled down by a track of footprints, taking a picture with the camera he was carrying around to capture any evidence that might be useful. He stood again, looking around for anything else that may help. Something caught at the corner of his eye instead. Spencer turned to see the car that they had the cop playing as the sniper in the trunk. There was tons of white smoke rising from the ground right around it...

"Reid! Reid, get down!" Morgan yelled from behind him. Spencer frowned and turned, completely confused as to what was happening.

"What, why..."

Morgan didn't let him finish before he grabbed Spencer's arms and pulled him down on the ground where he crouched as well. Spencer lied on his side with wide eyes, watching members of the SWAT team dressed in all black surround the car. Morgan tapped his shoulder and nodded his head towards the large tree to their right. Spencer nodded and took a deep breath, pushing himself up so he was in a crouching position. Morgan quickly made his way behind the tree, staying crouched low. Spencer followed after him, not stopping until they were both concealed behind the tree.

"What's happening?" Spencer asked, trying to look over Morgan's shoulder. Derek glanced back and pushed Spencer back behind him again.

"Ah ah ah, stay there." he said, making Spencer huff in frustration. The team babied him too much sometimes.

"It looks like they're about to arrest the cop who's playing the sniper... Damn..." he muttered. Spencer kneeled down on the ground since his ankles were starting to hurt from crouching so much. Morgan retreated back again so he was completely concealed by the tree.

"I think they think he's the unsub." Morgan explained, making eye contact with Reid who drew his eyebrows together.

"How would they conclude that?"

Morgan shrugged, swerving his head a bit to the side to see past the tree again.

"They're taking him away. It might be safe now-" He began to say, but suddenly retracted back again. "Nope, nope. He was just shot." he said. Spencer's eyes went wide again.

"What!"

"He just got shot!" Morgan repeated. Spencer opened his mouth to say something but then closed it and shook his head. He straightened enough to lean over and see around the other side of the tree, his sights falling about the scene of the SWAT team bustling around like crazy and a man who was lying on the ground, most likely dead. Further off he saw Gideon crouching beside JJ, holding his arms over her protectively.

"Reid!" Morgan protested. Spencer ignored him and kept watching. He saw Derek shake his head in disapproval out of the corner of his eye, but he didn't care. The commotion carried on for a couple minutes more until they had cleared the body away and secured the area. A voice came on Morgan's walkie talkie.

"Alright, everything is clear." The crackle of the radio sounded. Morgan frowned through thick eyebrows, obviously still worried. He hesitantly stood though, Spencer joining him. Morgan walked around the tree to watch the SWAT team clear up the area. Spencer watched his expression, knowing he was extremely troubled by what just happened. He couldn't blame him. Reid was still shaken up.

"Hey, are you okay?" Morgan asked, tearing his eyes from the scene and putting a hand on Spencer's shoulder. Reid nodded, tilting his head towards him.

"Are you?" he asked. Morgan gently smiled and nodded.

"Yeah. Let's head back to the office." He said, clapping Spencer on the back as they walked up to the parking lot.

Spencer froze even seconds after the shot was fired. There was still a ringing sound in his ears from the loud bang that was the gun he'd shot the unsub with. A dark spot appeared in the middle of the man's forehead above his eyes that went wide and suddenly glossed over. Spencer watched as the unsub collapsed, his gun clattering to the floor. It wasn't until then when Spencer let out the air in his lungs that he'd been holding in. The room erupted into a chatter among the hostages around him, no one noticing how terrified and frozen Spencer still was.

When he finally had the power to lower his arms and relax, Hotch had already made it across the room towards the door where it sounded like troops were gathering outside of.

"Federal Agent!" he was yelling, but Spencer wasn't exactly listening. He took quick breaths like he couldn't get enough. Had he really just shot someone? His heart still raced. His face still hurt from where the unsub hit him and most of all his abdomen and chest hurt from Hotch's continuous kicking. He rose his shaking hands that were still bound in a zip tie towards his stomach, gently pressing down on his ribs to see how bad it was. Pain shot through him, but it wasn't bad. He'd just be sore for a while. The pain reminded him of how he used to be beat in high school... and middle school... and elementary school. He was used to it by now though.

Spencer didn't even realize he had still been holding the gun loosely in one hand until he heard it hit the floor. The image of the bullet burying itself inside of the man's forehead replayed in his memory over and over again. Having an amazing memory did have its negatives.

"Spence!" he heard JJ's voice call through the room. He looked up through scared eyes to see JJ rushing towards him, dropping on her knees beside him.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her eyes wide while examining him. She put her hand on his back and the other one on the side of his face to examine the spots of blood from when he was hit. He squirmed out of habit, but she was patient with him.

"JJ, could I get these off somehow?" he asked, raising his arms to show her the zip tie bounding his hands. She nodded and made eye contact with him, her eyes softening.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked.

"Yes, JJ. Please?" he asked, gesturing towards he wrists again. She stood and bounded off towards Morgan who looked over at Spencer over her shoulder. He pulled out a pocket knife after she said inaudible words to him and soon she was back at Spencer's side. JJ flipped the blade open and Spencer held out his wrists. She put the blade under the plastic and yanked the blade through, away from Spencer. The binds tore off and Spencer sighed with relief. He rubbed his red wrists where the tie was cutting into his skin.

"Thank you." he breathed. JJ stood and flipped the knife closed, putting a hand out for Spencer to grab. He did and she pulled him up to his feet. He felt his abdomen ache from the bruises he knew he had.

"Come on, we'll go get a medic to check you out." JJ said, putting an arm around his back. Spencer told her the story of what had happened. She gasped when he got to the part about Hotch kicking him. She looked absolutely horrified, but Spencer gave her shoulder a gently squeeze.

"I'm fine. It wasn't that bad." he assured her, but JJ still looked terrified. She kept fretting over him the entire way through the hallways. There were colored lights flashing through the windows of the stairwell. Spencer knew that there must've been nearly an army of police cars and ambulances outside. When he and JJ pushed through the doors and walked into the night air, he found himself to be right. JJ took him to the closest ambulance, staying with him while the medic checked out his face and the bruises on his chest. Luckily he had no damaged ribs. After knowing that, he knew he'd be fine.

"I'm going to go see if Hotch needs me to do anything. I'll come check on you later." JJ said, putting her hand on his arm one last time before walking off, her blonde hair swishing behind her as she walked away through the crowd of cops and medics. Spencer took a deep breath, ignoring the pain that flared up in his chest as he did so. His peripheral vision caught Hotch making his way over to him, a guilty look painted across his face. Spencer leaned back on the edge of the floor of the ambulance, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You alright?" Hotch asked as he approached. Spencer sighed and nodded, trying to find his voice.

"Yeah..." he managed to get out in a whisper. To be honest, he still was a little shaken up. Being taken hostage by an unsub, getting beat up by his boss, and shooting someone in the head wasn't exactly a normal day for him.

Hotch was quiet for a second, looking at him through worried eyes. "Nice shot..." he said, tilting his head a bit to see Spencer a bit better as he was looking at the ground. Spencer nodded a bit before looking up at Hotch. He opened his mouth to say something, looking back down at the ground.

"I was aiming for his leg." he said, a smile sneaking up on him. He looked up at Hotch who looked equally amused until he gave a small shrug.

"I wouldn't have kept kicking, but I was afraid you didn't get my plan." he said, sounding guilty. Spencer smiled a bit more, raising his eyebrows up at Aaron.

"I got your plan as soon as you moved the hostages out of my line of fire." he said, nodding a bit at the end. Despite the fact that his face hurt, he was still smirking. The situation did hit him as a bit amusing save for the fact that he just killed someone. That still weighed upon him constantly at the back of his mind.

"Well I hope I didn't hurt you too bad." Hotch said, looking down at the ground and then back at Spencer. Reid chuckled and took a deep breath.

"Hotch, I was a twelve year old prodigy in a Las Vegas Public High School." he reminded him, smiling a bit. "You kick like a nine year old girl." he added, giving a short laugh afterwards. Hotch smiled while Spencer looked down at the gun lying besides him. He picked it up, giving it one last look before holding it out for Hotch to take back.

"Keep it." Hotch said, patting Spencer on the shoulder. "As far as I'm concerned, you've passed your qualifications." Spencer tried to keep his excitement down at these words. He couldn't help as it bubbled up inside of him though. Maybe this night did work out for the best. Hotch gave him one last smile before turning to walk off. Spencer sighed and pushed himself off the back of the ambulance, walking off to find Morgan about to come see him.

"Reid, you alright?" he asked. Spencer didn't answer, but instead reached inside his back pocket to pull out the whistle Morgan had originally given him as a joke. He put it in Morgan's hand and walked off, smiling at the dumbfounded look he left Morgan with. Yeah, this night did work out for the best.

**A/N: So the last part was obviously an actual scene from the actual episode, but it felt wrong leaving it out since it was so cute. **


	3. Saving Elle

**Season 1: Episode 9**

"You okay?" Gideon asked, putting a hand on Spencer's arm. Spence looked up from where he was leaning over the shot unsub. Before he had even knew what was happening, one of the hostages from the back of the train had shot the unsub. Spencer was still shaking.

"Ye- yeah." he managed to stutter out. Gideon pat his shoulder before moving to Elle, asking her the same question. Reid looked up at the ceiling of the stationary plane and took a deep breath. It was over. It hadn't gone how they would've hoped but still, it was over. He just kept repeating that over and over in his mind, trying to calm himself down.

"Come on." he heard Gideon say gently. Spencer turned to see him and Elle, waiting for him in the aisle to make their way out of the train car. Spencer swallowed and nodded, silently following them and a couple of other hostages out as a few medics were coming in to help the psychiatrist that had been shot. Gideon told Spencer and Elle to go ahead before he turned to the medics, giving them the run down on the injured people in a low voice. Spencer followed Elle out into the sun, squinting against the light.

"Elle, Reid. You guys okay?" Hotch's voice instantly greeted them, his frown approaching them. Elle and Spence nodded, walking out to meet Hotch by a grouping of officers and SWAT team members.

"Aaron Hotchner?" a voice called from over in the other direction. Hotch turned to see an officer waving him over. He grimaced and turned a guilty look upon Elle and Spencer.

"Sorry, I'll check in after I get this all sorted out. I want you both to see a medic just in case." he said, giving orders.

"Yes sir." Elle said, nodding and raising her eyebrows. She looked over at Spencer, about to say something but she stopped before she did. Spencer frowned, confused at first until he felt someone smack the back of his head pretty hard. Reid yelped an "ow" and put his hand to his skull where he'd been hit. He turned to see Morgan, an mix of anger and worry on his face.

"What part of 'don't take your vest off' do you not understand?" he asked sternly, looking at Spencer with dark drilling eyes. Spencer cringed and shrugged.

"There was nothing I could do!" he defended in a high voice. Morgan's face softened and he shook his head. He put a hand on Reid's back while looking over at Elle.

"Well, I'm just glad you're okay. Both of you." he said sincerely. Spencer smiled. He couldn't have said it better himself.

Later on, Spencer found himself pulling up into the parking lot of the nearest hospital where Elle had been taken. He shut off the ignition and sat in the drivers seat. He sighed and looked down at his hands folded in his lap. He was able to calm down in the past hour more or less. He was just glad that the rest of the hostages made it out alive.

He finally found the strength to push himself off of his seat and out of the car. Spence made his way to the hospital, asking the lady at the front desk where he might find Elle. She directed him up to the fourth floor in a room down the hall which he found moderately easily. She was sitting on the hospital bed, hooked up to multiple machines that continued in a steady rhythm.

"Hey." Spencer murmured, entering the room and moving to the chair beside the bed. Elle looked up and smiled at the sight of him, watching him intently as he sat down.

"Hey, is any of the chaos calming down?" she asked, crossing her hands on her lap in front of her. Spencer shrugged.

"I don't know. I left before JJ could go crazy, fretting over me." he said, making Elle throw her head back and laugh.

"You are that girl's baby, Reid. I hope you know that."

Spencer rolled his eyes, but smiled. Sometimes it drove him crazy, but most of the time he loved his team, even when they messed around with him.

"I'm glad you're okay." Spencer said, when she stopped laughing. Elle smiled and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Spencer." she said quietly. Spencer smiled and nodded, looking down at the floor shyly. They sat in silence for a while before Elle groaned and leaned over where she sat, moving towards the beeping machine. She messed with buttons and knobs, obviously not knowing what she was doing.

"Uh, Elle... Elle, I don't think you're supposed to touch that." Spencer stuttered nervously, watching her cause more noises and beeps emanate out of the machine. Elle cursed under her breath, slamming her hand down on a few buttons in frustration, silencing the machine.

"There, finally." she said, making Spencer smile at her lack of care. "Come on. Let's go get some lunch." she said, ripping off sensors that were stuck to her skin to monitor her vitals. Spencer sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to talk her into waiting until she was cleared from the hospital. Instead, she took her jacket from the chair, holding it out so he could help her put in on.

"Perfect gentleman." she said, nudging him in the ribs and making him shy away. "So how do you feel about Thai?"


	4. Nightmares and Gunpoint

Spencer laid in his bed, looking up at the ceiling. His apartment was completely silent, save for the steady ticking of the clock out in his living room. He turned to his side, looking out the window to the lights of the buildings in the distance. He wanted to fall asleep, he just knew what would happen if he did. It was already two in the morning. Spence knew he couldn't keep going on like this. The few hours he did sleep though, he was plagued with nightmares. They were so vivid too.

Sighing, Reid ran his hands through his tousled hair and buried his head in his pillow. He'd have to get up in four hours. He could at least try to sleep. Spencer tried to think of something to distract his mind. Quantum theorems, Charles Dickens... anything.

Finally, he could feel fatigue setting in. His eyes became heavier and heavier as darkness consumed him.

_ Spencer found himself standing in the middle of what looked to be a graveyard of stretching rows of headstones. Fog was heavy in the air and the ground crunched under his feet as he walked, shattering brittle, dead leaves on the ground. His only source of light was the full moon shining down translucent rays, creating an eerie glow. He had no idea where he was going, but he knew he had to keep walking. _

_ Spencer passed headstone after headstone, not bothering to look at the names. For some reason, deep in the back of his mind he knew he didn't want to. He kept walking, further and further into the rolling hills covered with stone slabs. As he carried on, Reid could've sworn he heard something behind him. He turned around, to reveal nothing but more extended land that never ended in the thick mist. Spencer turned back around and began walking faster, feeling his heart rate pick up. _

_ A few seconds in, he heard it again. There were crunching footsteps coming up behind him. Spencer whipped around to see the same thing as last time; nothing. He was almost in a run now, taking long strides to try and get out. The rows just kept on going however. He was beginning to think he'd never get out of her. _

_ "You can't run, Dr." a voice hissed behind him. Spencer yelped and turned around to see a dark figure standing about ten feet from him, the outline of a knife in his hand. Spencer whimpered and stumbled backwards, not able to tear his eyes from the mysterious figure. It didn't make any advancements towards him. It just stood there and watched him take steps backwards slowly. He didn't stay stationary for long, however. Spencer watched in horror as it took a stride forward, advancing towards him. Reid clenched his fists and began walking back faster, glancing back once and a while to make sure he wasn't going to run into a tombstone. _

_ With one swift movement, the figure lunged forward, running towards Spencer with billowing robes of black. He felt his heart nearly jump out of his chest as he moved to turn. When attempting to turn and run, suddenly a gravestone appeared out of no where. Spencer tried to dogde it, but the tip of his converse caught the corner, and he went down hard, hitting the ground. Reid grunted and hurriedly pushed himself up, looking at the tombstone he'd tripped over. _

_ Derek Morgan_

_ No... No, it couldn't be Morgan. Morgan was fine, he was fine... Spencer kept telling himself. His breathing was abnormally fast and shallow now, panic settling in. The dark figure was gone at least, but that was the least of Spencer's worries. He pushed himself up onto his feet, now able to see the other side of the tombstone. There was a giant rectangular hole in the ground, the kind they lowered caskets into. There wasn't a casket though. There was just the unmistakable lifeless figure of none other than Derek Morgan lying dead in the opening. _

_ "No!" Spencer shouted, running to the edge of the hole and crouching down to make sure it was him. His dark, nearly black eyes stared up at the dark skies above them, looking into an abyss no one could see. His hands were crossed over his chest as if someone had tried to make him look peaceful, but his appearance was everything but. Blood soaked Morgan's shirt and there was a deep red cut slashed across his neck. Spencer couldn't even find the strength to scream. He was far in shock, unable to even move. _

_ The one thing that got him moving was that when Spencer looked up, six more holes appeared with six more headstones that looked the same. Reid found himself standing up and walking over to the next. _

_ Aaron Hotchner._

_ Inside the hole was Hotch, his arms crossed over his chest in the same way. His eyes were wide open, staring directly into Spencer's as he stood over his boss, his throat tightening. _

_ Jason Gideon._

_ The next one said. He lied motionless in the same way. _

_ "No, no... Please... Gideon!" Spencer whimpered, calling out to someone he knew would never answer. He continued to the other holes in the ground. _

_ Elle Greenaway. _

_ Penelope Garcia._

_ Spencer felt tears run down his cheeks, tearing his eyes from the sight of Garcia's mutilated body in front of the headstone with her name carved in the front. Spencer knew whose was coming next, but when he got to the stone marked "Jennifer Jareau", there was no one in the hole beside it. Spencer let out a relieved breath. She must've been alright..._

_ "Spence!" he heard a shriek from behind him. Spencer turned around to see the same darkly cloaked figure with an arm around JJ's waist, his other hand yanking her up by her hair. Reid felt anger and fear flare inside of him. Before he could even move, the figure took out it's knife that gleamed in the moonlight, and ran it across her throat, dropping JJ to the ground. Spencer screamed and ran forward to catch her body before it hit the ground. The figure disappeared as he held her in his arms, his eyes wide upon seeing the blood pouring from her neck. JJ convulsed in his arms, her blonde hair spilling over his arm that was supporting her head. Her eyes were filled with tears while she looked up into his with a terrified expression. _

_ "JJ! JJ, please..." he whimpered, holding her tight. Within seconds, her body went limp, her eyes going lifeless. Spencer let out a choked sob and held her close. Unfortunately, there was suddenly nothing there. Her body just vanished from his arms, and left him shaking with sobs alone and kneeling on the cold ground. Spencer raised his tear filled eyes to see her body lying in what used to be an empty hole in the ground. Now she looked just like the others. _

_ There was one tombstone left. One stone, one hole, one name. Spencer stood and hesitantly made his way over, reading the familiar letters carved into the surface. _

_ Spencer Reid. _

_ Reid wanted to run, he wanted to get out, but he couldn't move. He could sense the presence of a figure approach him from behind, but he was frozen in place as he shook with fear and anguish. Spencer felt one more tear run down his cheek before he only saw a flash of a gleaming blade move quickly before his eyes within a fraction of a second. He felt the cool knife on the skin of his neck and heard the sound of slicing through flesh... _

Spencer Reid jumped awake, a scream tearing from his throat. He was shaking uncontrollably, sweat collecting on his forehead. He was sitting upright in his bed, the skies still dark from outside his window. Spencer hugged his arms to his chest, and rocked back and forth to try to calm himself down.

It was just a dream, it was just a dream... he kept telling himself over and over again. Somehow he still couldn't get the image of his dead friends faces out of his head though. JJ... she looked so scared and he couldn't do anything about it.

Spencer felt tears collect in his eyes, but he hurriedly wiped them away. He glanced over at his alarm clock. 4:48. He usually didn't get up until 6 for work, but there was no way he wanted to go back to sleep now. Reid pushed the blankets of himself and threw he legs over the side of his bed, running his hands that were still shaking through his unruly hair. Spence took a deep breath and got up, moving to his living room. Maybe he'd just go into work now. At least it'd be a distraction.

Spencer pushed the kid holding him at gunpoint backwards, freeing himself long enough for Morgan to lunge forward. What he wasn't expecting however, was for Morgan to run at them both, taking Spencer down with him. Spence grunted from the impact of hitting the ground. He turned on his side to see Morgan land a blow in the boy's face who turned out to be the unsub. Spencer's breathing was quick and labored from the scare of being held at gunpoint. He should've seen that coming.

"You okay?" Morgan asked, kneeling over the nearly unconscious kid who was now bleeding. Spencer glanced up at Derek before nodding.

"Yeah, what was that?" he asked, brushing a lock of loose hair behind his ear.

"Him bringing us here was way too convenient." Morgan explained, making Spencer shake his head. He had already guessed that as soon as the kid grabbed him.

"No I got that. Did you really have to tackle us both?" he asked, earning an eye roll from Morgan.

"You're welcome, kid." he said, sarcastically. He grabbed the kid from the ground roughly by his jacket, yanking him up. Spencer sighed and ran his hands through his hair before pushing himself up, following Morgan through the thick layers of dead leaves on the ground. They made their way around the house where SUVs with sirens were pulling up to.

"Morgan! Reid! You guys okay?" Hotch asked, stepping out of the drivers seat of the first car. Morgan dragged the unsub to the backseat, nodding.

"Yeah, I'd have the kid checked out." Morgan said, turning Hotch's frown towards Spencer.

"Are you okay? What happened?" Reid made a dismissive gesture with his hand to tell him it was nothing and gave Hotch a small recap of what had happened. Hotch watched him with worried eyes, and gave a curt nod.

"Alright, well we'll have the medics check you out when we get back. Hop in, I'll drive." he gave orders. Spencer nodded and got into the passenger seat of the car. Hotch climbed in afterwards, pulling the door shut and turning on the car while waiting for Morgan, the unsub, and the cop driving the other car to pull out.

"Hey, by the way, I never want you to feel like you can't tell me stuff, Reid." Hotch said, turning his gaze to him for a moment before leaving. "I know you have a habit of shutting people out when something is bothering you..."

"I don't do that!" Spencer stubbornly defended. Hotch raised his eyebrows at him as if to tell him to rethink what he had just said. Somewhere in the back of Reid's mind he knew he was right. He didn't like bothering people with his problems. He had come so accustomed to hiding things like getting beaten at school and bullied in other relentless ways from his mother when he was younger that know it was just second nature. No one had exactly tried to help him back then anyway. He wasn't used to having people who profiled his problems out of him.

"Maybe sometimes..." Spencer muttered, looking away from Hotch.

"Well Reid, it's nothing to be ashamed about. You aren't the only one. Everyone on this team has had them. I still do. It's something that we have to put up with, doing this job. You just need to compartmentalize from work and your home life. It's not easy, but you will." Hotch told him. Spencer just silently nodded and looked down at his feet. Hotch gave him one last concerned gaze before backing out and turning to head down the dirt road back to the police department.


	5. Lila

** Season 1: Episode 18**

"Here you go." Lila said, setting a colorful cup of tea down on the coffee table in front of where Spencer sat. He was still looking around with wondrous eyes at her house, or rental house she said. She sunk down in the couch next to him, awfully close for how much space they potentially had. Spencer's heart rate picked up, feeling her presence so closely beside him. He was sent to protect her, and she wasn't making it too easy to focus.

"Thank you." he said, reaching over to take the steaming cup of tea in his hand. He held it up to lightly blow cool air on the surface as Lila scooted closer to him, her leg brushing up against his own. His heart lurched at the contact. Reid watched her out of the corner of his eye, looking at the way she looked so comfortable with nearly cuddling up next to him. He had never expected to get this kind of attention from a girl. Not to mention, a beautiful actress girl. He still somehow couldn't quite believe it. Just the thought left Reid in a stuttering mess.

"Um... uh, so I should show you what to do about your, um... windows..." he stammered, diverting his eyes to everywhere but Lila. She was quite the opposite though. He sensed her eyes intently watching him, with a fond expression that he had never really gotten from anyone.

"I have a better idea. Let's watch a movie!" She said, bouncing up a bit excitedly. Spencer put his tea back down on the table and looked over at her with wide eyes.

"No! No, movie!" he said, shaking his head frantically. He'd only been there for not even ten minutes yet and she already had complete disregard for his safety measures. She was being stalked for God's sake!

"Spencerrrrr" she whined, standing up and taking his hand in hers, yanking him up off the couch with all of her might. Reid frowned and tried to ignore the fact that her hands were so soft and warm...

"Come on, I'll even let you pick." she said, trying to drag him off into another room. Spencer stayed stationary however, planting his feet firmly to the ground so that she just was tugging on his arm persistently without any progress.

"No, Lila. I'm serious, I need all my focus. I can't watch a movie." he said, although not at all assertively like he wanted to. It came off more shy and timid, making her continue to persist.

"Don't be such a party pooper." she said, making Reid roll his eyes and smile a bit.

"I'm not here to party! I'm here to protect you from a psychotic killer!" he argued, watching as she dropped his arm and became occupied with something else on the other side of the room. There was a child-like wonder about her that was admittedly cute, but at the same time exhausting.

Lila eventually got tired of trying to get Spencer to watch a movie with her and went to her room to get ready, Spencer assuming that she meant to go to sleep. The thought of her even alone for a few minutes scared him, but he wasn't going to be constant enough to stand right outside her room. She needed some space at least.

Instead Spencer walked around, looking at things that she could make safer in the face of a threat of a stalker. He eventually found himself looking at the piece of art hanging on her wall with strips of photos put together in a collage of sorts. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at it, trying to figure out what Lila had meant earlier at the art gallery when she'd asked how it made him feel. The only thing he really felt right now was all kind of nervous. Nervous for Lila's safety, nervous just for the sake of being alone with a flirty beautiful girl, and nervous that he'd either mess things up with her or with his job to protect her.

"So do you feel anything yet?" she asked, suddenly coming up beside him. Spencer kept his eyes on the artwork, squinting a bit.

"This one is definitely appealing..." he said, trying hard to see what she saw. He was all about math, science, and statistics. He didn't much get into the artsy deep feeling stuff.

"It's a start." she said in a mere whisper from beside him. He felt her presence leave his side and heard the small patter of her steps across the glossy stone floor. Reid tore his eyes from the picture to turn and see Lila walking towards her patio, dressed in only a robe and what seemed to be a swimsuit underneath.

"What are you doing?" he asked hesitantly, not wanting to know her answer.

"Going for a swim." she said casually. Spencer's eyes went wide, his crossed arms unraveling from in front of him.

"What? No. Lila." he called after her, begging to follow her as she reached for the tassel of her robe string to pull off the robe and throw it aside. Spencer tried to ignore the fact that she was only in a bikini now, her blonde hair brushing lightly over her shoulders.

Spencer walked quickly after her, but she walked quickly as well. Before he could do anything, she rose her arms above her head and had dove headfirst into the water of her glowing pool. The water churned around her from the impact of her body slicing into the water. Spencer jumped back a bit, getting hit from a light spray of water. He groaned slightly, frustrated with her insolence and the fact that the water was cold.

"Wooh!" Lila said, resurfacing and pushing her wet hair behind her ears and shaking some water out. Spencer looked at her with his eyebrows pulled together in concern. He watched her with begging eyes, thinking of all the terrible things that could happen any second.

"Lila, you cannot do this." he told her, nervously looking around for any potential threats. Lila looked up at him with a flirty smile, keeping her body from shoulders down under the water.

"Five minutes." she tried to bargain, smiling up at him. She tread water while glancing over at her house, pointing towards the open doors they'd just walked through.

"Go get a suit. In the house." she said. Spencer threw his hands up in complete irritation at her negligence.

"What? No! I'm not gonna grab a suit! Are you kidding me? No!" he said, his voice raising a couple of octaves just out of pure bafflement at how insane she was.

"Join me!" she coaxed, obviously amused by his surprise.

"No, I'm not going to join you." he continued to argue, holding out his hands defensively. Her face went serious all of the sudden while she gazed up at him with big eyes.

"Why not?" she asked, upset that he wasn't cooperating.

"You being pursued by a psychotic killer who shoots people in the head!"

"I'm not gonna stop living my life, I'm just not." she said, getting frustrated as well. She swam around a bit, her hair swaying in the water. Spencer sighed and diverted his eyes from her, still in disbelief of her childishness. He had no idea how to deal with cooperative girls as it was. A stubborn one seemed nearly impossible.

"Lila, I'm begging you. Will you please get out of the pool?" he asked, lowering his voice to show her he was serious.

"Really, Spencer. You should live a little." she said, backstroking a bit to look up at him.

"Live a little? I've known you 48 hours! I feel like I've aged ten years!"

Lila scoffed up at the sky, throwing her head back in smiling. "I can't be that bad."

"Yes, no, you are that bad." Spencer said, nodding a bit and feeling uncomfortable with the fact that under other circumstances he wouldn't hesitate going with her.

Lila turned her gaze to him, looking deeply with intent eyes. He looked away shyly, silently begging her with all his might. He looked back up to see her dip her head under the water one last time before she swam to the side of the pool. She put her forearms up on the ground he stood on, only a few inches from him. She looked up at him with gorgeous eyes, pressing her lips together. Spencer stirred uncomfortably, giving her his puppy dog eyes. She seemed to give a defeated look, sighing a bit.

"Fine. Can you help me out at least?" she asked, shrugging a shoulder casually. Spencer frowning a bit and seeing there was something she wasn't saying. He fidgeted uncomfortably before hesitantly reaching down, putting out his hand for her to take. She took his hand in her own and braced her stance against the side of the pool, pulling on Spencer's arm a little too hard. He braced his stance, straining against her pull. He realized a little too late that she didn't exactly have intentions of getting out.

With one swift movement, she yanked him in. Spencer yelping a bit as he hit the cool water, the liquid surrounding him in a blanket of cold. Spencer broke the surface into the warm night air, the first sound he heard being Lila's uncontrollable laughter. He found the bottom of the pool with his feet, standing and feeling his soaked clothing hang heavily on his body. Reid felt his hair hanging over his face so he pushed it back out of his face, still in shock.

"Yeah, very funny." he muttered, making his way to the side of the pool. "Laugh it up, Lila. You got my gun wet." he said, throwing it aside on the concrete edge of the pool. Spencer turned back to find Lila swimming up to him, a smug look on her face. Spencer held his hands above the water, trying to keep himself from getting any wetter. It really was no use at this point, however.

Suddenly the situation struck him... Spencer couldn't help it as a smile spread across his lips and a short laugh escaped his mouth. She laughed with him and he smoothed his hair back and looked down at his clothes that floated around him in the water.

"My clothes..." he murmured through a smile. Reid wiped water away from his eyes, trying to decrease the slight stinging from the chlorine. He blinked a few times, clearing his vision to reveal Lila in the water in front of him, the same fond smile she wore around him so often painted across her face.

"You should've worn the suit." she joked in a low voice. Spencer was so occupied with looking down at the damage to his clothes that he didn't notice the way she was slowly coming closer to him. When he realized she had closed the gap nearly completely between them, he glanced up. Just as he did, he felt her hands at the back of his neck, pulling him to her while at the same time, she grabbed his tie to gently tug him forward. Spencer's heart was suddenly beating faster than it ever had. He could only stare at the way she was looking at him, her face only a few inches away from his own. All responsibilities forgotten, he realized that he really did want to kiss her in that moment.

Lila seemed to have the same idea as she leaned in and pressed her lips against his, completely stopping his thoughts. He could only think of one thing to do; kiss her back. Spencer moved his lips in synchronization against hers, feeling her hands tighten around his neck to pull him in deeper. The way her soft lips were moving against his was already stirring a warm feeling at the pit of his stomach, something he really had never felt before. She entwined their legs underwater, tangling them up in each other.

A few seconds went by with them on each other's lips before something clicked in Spencer's mind and he realized how wrong this was.

"This is completely inappropriate." he said, tilting his head to the side out of reach from her lips. Her hands still remained around the back of his neck, still trying to pull him in for more. Reid tried to ignore the begging look she was giving him out of the corner of his eye. If he looked, he knew he'd lose all control.

"This..." she began to say, putting her hand on the side of his face to turn his gaze back on her. Spencer felt his chest tighten just at the sight of her. She brushed his hair behind his ear and took the side of his face with her hand again. "What's this?" she muttered, pulling him in to press her lips to his once again. Spencer kissed her back shortly, but then pulled back again, to protest.

"This isn't-" he tried to say, but was interrupted when she pulled his lips back against her own. Spencer felt incredibly conflicted. He knew there was so many things wrong with letting her do this and doing it back even, but it felt so good. He tried to pull away again, but she just yanked him back in, taking his lips harder. He was starting to relax, just focusing on the feel of her lips against his, her waist coming dangerously close to his own and her barely clothed body nearly on top of him.

There was a moment where Lila pulled back to look into his eyes as if to see if he still wanted to protest. Spencer was completely gone at this point however, and there was no point in turning back. He had wanted her since they'd talked at the art gallery, he didn't have the strength in him to deny the feel of her kissing him.

She must've sensed his desire, because as soon as he went to smooth back his hair, the hands on the side of his face pulled him close to her. She tilted her head to the side and smashed her lips into his forcefully, fueling the fire inside of him. He completely gave up. Gave in. Surrendered. However one wanted to put it, Spencer just wanted her. He didn't care the consequences.

Her mouth opened up to him as her arm wrapped around his back to pull their bodies together. Her waist pushed against his, and he resisted the urge to gasp from the contact. His eyes fluttered closed and before he knew it, his hands were on the side of her face, pulling her in deeper while she did the same, her hands snaking through his hair. They both opened their mouth, her tongue slipping into his mouth and massaging his own. Spencer suppressed the urge to moan, their tongues entwining.

Suddenly he stopped altogether, realizing he was getting way too worked up. He knew how this worked more or less. One thing would lead to another and then he'd wake up in her bed naked and then Hotch would find out and then he'd lose his job and all because Lila only viewed him as some kind of hero because he was there to protect her.

"No." he said jerking back, holding a hand in front of him. She looked at him with a concerned gaze, her arms dropping to her side. "There's this thing called transference." Her gaze watched him, her expression filled with disappointment.

"You don't like me?" she misinterpreted. Spencer double taked, frowning at her.

"What?" he asked, surprised. Lila tilted her head at him.

"You don't like me." she repeated.

"No, are you cra-" he began to say. He didn't like her? He didn't know how he possibly couldn't. "I do." he assured her, making Lila's lips turn up in a smile.

"I like you." she said, giving him a half smile that really made him want to take her and kiss her deeply all over again. He didn't know what was happening. He'd never seen this side of himself. He lost all control, it scared him.

"I like you too." he said quickly. "Just I'm a, uh... Fe-federal Agent, you know?" he stuttered, his gaze somewhere far off away from her as he tried to find the right words to explain why this was wrong. It was hard when he wanted it so bad.

"And I'm, supposed to protect you." he said, turning his eyes back on hers. She still had that same gaze that told him that she wanted to kiss again as much as he did.

"Then keep me close." she said, dipping her head and grabbing the fabric of his shirt to pull him in close. Spencer raised an eyebrow, his heart beating faster again.

"Just, um..." he started to protest weakly. She moved closer, a knowing smile across her lips knowing that he wouldn't be able to resist. "I'm just a little bit worried, you know..." he stuttered to no one listening. Lila leaned in and pressed a kiss on his lips, fitting their lips together perfectly for Spencer to kiss her back shortly before she pulled back to tilt her head, ready to kiss him again.

"We're- We're in a pool." he stated obviously before she took him again, stopping his speech with her lips. He could taste a mix of mint and chlorine on her lips and on her tongue, loving every second of it despite his pathetic "attempts" to stop her.

"And its- We're-" Lila stopped him again, the sound of her kissing him filling the air. "Pretty much exposed." he continued rambling like she never had stopped him. She wrapped her arm around his back again, pulling his body flush against hers. Spence subconsciously raised an arm around her back as well, pulling her close and being the one to kiss her hard this time. Even still he had a hard time believing that a beautiful girl was in the pool all over him. He hated to say it, but she had him in the palm of her hand.

"We have cops posted out front." she said, taking a deep breath in while kissing him again, brushing her tongue to the bottom of his lip before pulling back and driving him crazy. He watched her with longing eyes, wanting so badly to feel her tongue against his again.

"We have coyotes out back." she said, kissing him again, their wet skin pressing against one another's. Everything he thought, breathed, felt... it was all Lila. He was completely consumed in her, completely at her mercy. Maybe it was best he stayed away from girls...

"And right here, it's just you and me." she said in a quiet voice, her eyes locking with his and captivating him completely. Spencer wished he could keep down the thoughts he was having about her, his desire to go further with each passing second. Lila was leaning in closer and closer, tilting her head to the side to take his lips in her own again. She nuzzled her nose against his, giving Spencer time to realize how loud and fast his breathing patterns had risen to. She pushed forward a bit, brushing her lips against his ever so lightly.

Something in Spencer's mind clicked again, and he realized what was happening. He was on a case for the FBI, kissing a victim in her pool when he was supposed to be protected her. He couldn't give into his lust he obviously had for her.

"I, uh..." he started to mutter while craning his head away from her, leaving his neck exposed. She began to try nipping lightly at his neck, but Spencer pulled away.

"Stop. I'm sorry..." he said, trying to wiggle out of her grasp. He put a hand on her shoulder just as she started climbing up on him, pressing herself into his waist. Boy, was this really hard to resist. Reid found the strength somewhere to gently push her away, frowning and looking in a different direction.

"I have to tell you something." he said, hesitating. He knew what was coming next wasn't going to be easy but he couldn't possibly carry on with the secret he was keeping from her.

"Lila..." Spencer murmured, coming up to the ambulance she was sitting on the edge of outside of her house. She had a blanket wrapped around her, but from what he could see there wasn't much damage to her. She looked completely terrified however, her eyes still filled with tears.

Lila glanced up at him as he approached, awkwardly nodding towards the spot next to her.

"May I?"

Lila nodded silently, looking down at the ground with a shy look Spencer didn't even know she was capable of looking. He sat down next to her, sitting in silence for a bit. He had just rescued her from the unsub, but she was still shaken up. He didn't know what to do. Spence wasn't experienced with this stuff.

Like always though, Lila made the first move and threw herself into his chest, wrapping her arms around his torso. Spencer grunted, a small smile appearing on his lips while he wrapped his arms around her back as well. He felt her still slightly shaking from the scare of nearly being killed, so he held her close, making sure Hotch wasn't anywhere around.

"Thank you, Spencer." she said into his shirt, causing a warmth to spread into his chest. Spencer shivered and nodded.

"Yeah, anytime." he said it as casually as if talking about buying her a soda. Lila gave a short laugh and nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck, spurring the same feelings from the pool within him.

"Will you walk me inside?" she asked, pulling away to look into his eyes. Spencer bit his lip and nodded, standing up first to take her hand so she could shakily stand next to him. He led her inside, walking through her familiar living room towards what she had told him was her bedroom. He was planning on stopping there, but Lila tugged him along, away from the agents and cops conversing about reports and clean up in her kitchen.

Lila pulled Reid into her bedroom, shutting the door behind him and instantly making him nervous. He had been all over her a couple of hours ago though, he didn't know why he was always so nervous all over again. He really couldn't help it, he guessed.

"What about this one?" Lila asked, turning Spencer's eyes towards a piece of art over her bed. Spencer frowned and looked at it, examining the splatters of paint around a picture of a light far off in the distance. Spencer tilted his head, seeming to examine it more. Lila laughed lightly, taking his hand and pulling him closer to the end of her bed so Spencer could see it better.

"Is there some kind of deeper meaning?"

"I don't know. You tell me." Lila said, standing next to him. Her eyes weren't on the picture though, they were on him.

"I really can't concentrate right now." Spencer said, turning to see the way she was looking up at him. Lila smiled, her frightened gaze starting to melt away to be replaced by the same confident and slightly crazy Lila he had known in the past two or three days.

"Then don't think." she said, wrapping her arms around his waist and yanking his hips into hers. Spencer involuntarily made a strange gasp noise mixed with a whimper out of surprise from her sudden action. Lila made that same face that told him what was going to happen next. Spencer's breathing picked up, leaning in just as she did. Surprisingly enough, before their lips could meet, she gently guided him down to lie on his back on her bed. Spencer let her do what she pleased, feeling the soft blankets underneath him. Lila's weight sunk into the bed next to him, his eyes staying on the ceiling, his nerves forbidding him to move.

He sensed her throwing a leg over his waist, one knee on each side of him. He continued to look up at the white ceiling, feeling his chest rise and fall with exaggerated breaths. Lila eventually lowered herself to straddle him and lean down to press her forearms against his chest. Spencer bit his lip and closed his eyes enjoying the feeling of her on top of him.

"Hey..." she whispered from above him, making Spencer open his eyes to look at her smiling face right above his. She reached forward and brushed his hair back away from his face, tilting her head to the side. "It's me." she said, obviously detected how nervous he was. Spencer smiled a bit as she leaned in, her body pressing up against his harder while she pushed her lips against his and instantly kissed him hungrily. This time Spencer couldn't help it as he groaned into her mouth, raising his arms to gently put his hands on her hips.

Lila smiled a bit into their kiss, reaching her own arms back to put her hands on top of his to press them harder onto her body. Spencer got the message and pulled her waist down onto his own.

"Spencer!" a voice called out from the other side of Lila's door from what sounded like the living room. Spencer broke the kiss, turning away from Lila so that she couldn't nip at his lips anymore.

"Shoot..." he muttered, sitting up with Lila still straddling his lap. She put her hands on either sides of his face, laying more kisses on his lips repeatedly, ignoring his attempts to shy away.

"Lila... Lila, they're looking for me." He said, but in the same way as the pool, he couldn't help but kiss her back.

"They're- they-" he tried to get in between kisses, but she was extremely persistent. Eventually he gave in again, running his hand up her back to press right above her waist. Lila pushed herself harder into him slowly, driving Spencer insane. He felt her tongue touch his so he didn't hesitate to explore her mouth with his own while roaming his hands all over her back.

"Reid!" Gideon's voice called from the distance. Spencer yanked away and swore under his breath, gently pushing Lila off of him onto her bed. He stood and ran his hands through his hair, straightening it out in hopes to look more presentable. He tried to slow his breathing, but there really wasn't any luck in that. He could still feel his heart thumping sporadically, his insides still burning with the desire to just let Lila do whatever she wanted.

"I'm sorry, I have to go." he whispered, looking over at her with apologetic eyes. She gave him a small understanding smile and nodded towards the door.

"Go..." she gently said. Spencer smiled at her one last time before turning to walk out the door.

"Will I see you tomorrow before you leave?" she asked. Spencer looked over his shoulder for a moment and thought about it.

"Yeah, I'll make sure of it." he said, making Lila smile. This was definitely one of the best cases he had ever worked.


	6. Diana Reid and the Fisher King

**Season 2: Episode 1**

"There's only one really important question." Spencer said, his hands raised in defense. The disfigured being of Mr. Garner sat in the chair in front of him, his face and skin everywhere, completely scarred and malformed beyond recognition. The worst part was the trigger he held in his hand, his thumb playing lightly over the red button, ready to blow them sky high at any moment. The bombs were strapped around his torso, but he didn't look afraid at all. Spencer knew if he didn't convince him to put down the trigger soon, there'd be nothing left of him, the house, or his friends that were holding down the fort right outside the door.

"Can you forgive yourself?" Spencer asked carefully, his heart pounding at a million beats a minute. He could feel himself shaking at this point, his thoughts going wild with possibilities that could potentially happen in the span of a minute or less.

"I couldn't get to them." Garner rasped, barely moving from his place.

"If you tell me where she is..." Spencer began. "We can save Rebecca now."

What was left of a man, opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out so Spencer continued.

"Tell me where Rebecca is."

"You already know." Garner said, making Spencer frown in confusion. "I sent your mother the map." Spencer looked down and tried to remember, his eyebrows pulled together.

"What map?" he said in merely a whisper. Spencer watched as the Fisher King looked away and seemed to think over something. There was a feeling in the pit of Spencer's stomach that told him whatever was coming next, it wouldn't be good.

"Can I forgive myself?" he asked, making Spencer's chest tighten. He didn't like the sound in his voice. He subconsciously started backing up slowly, trying to ease himself away without triggering anything.

"No, I can't."

Spencer's heart nearly stopped in that moment. He knew exactly what was coming next. He looked at the man that was holding everyone's fate in his hands in horror for one last moment before stepping back and turning, not caring about easing out of the room anymore. He began to get away quickly, yelling,

"Run!" To Morgan and Hotch who were still waiting for him in the hallway, unaware of what was happening. Once Spencer heard the beeping signifying the activation of the bomb, he dove forward and put his hands over his head, feeling the heat begin to surge behind him. The loud boom of the bomb sounded and the hallway lit up with the extreme blinding light of fire. Spencer grunted upon hitting the ground, shielding his head with his hands from debris that flew over him.

"Don't move Reid, don't move!" he heard Morgan's voice boom over the sound of shattering glass. He was confused at first, but looked over his shoulder and saw that flames had spread throughout the fabric of his pants at the back of his knees. He felt the heat begin seeping through, and jumped when his leg began to burn with a heat stronger than he's ever felt before.

Morgan took a cloth and began tried to smother the fire, patting it over the back of his legs. Reid cringed and finally felt the heat lift as Hotch began muttering,

"Get him out, get- Let's go, let's go!" he shouted at the end, Spencer felt Hotch's arm around his chest and support him under his arm, pulling him upright. Spencer struggled to stand, his leg still burning. He felt Hotch's other arm secure around his back, helping him move forward as best as he could.

"Let's roll, let's go!" Morgan shouted from behind them. Spencer could barely see through the smoke at this point, and still was having a hard time finding his stance. Morgan gripped Spencer's bicep and helped Hotch partially drag him down the hallway, Reid tried to cough up the smoke in his lungs which wasn't helping him much in getting out of the hallway. The only reason he was even remotely still standing, was because of Hotch's arms holding him up and Morgan helping on the other side.

"What the hell was that?" Hotch asked as they all staggered down the hall, away from the blazing light of the fire behind them.

"He had a bomb." Spencer choked out, stating the obvious.

"You didn't think we needed to know that?" Morgan asked, clearly annoyed and still baffled with the fact that the house had just blown up.

"I told you to go downstairs." Spencer retorted as they reached the staircase of the foyer.

"Well you didn't say bomb. You left that part out." Morgan pointed out. Him and Hotch loosened their grip on Spencer while he regained his stance at the top of the stairs. Reid watched his co-workers begin to descend down the steps, but suddenly his mind was racing with thoughts on how to find the girl.

"Stop, stop , stop, stop!" Spencer said before Morgan could take his arm and drag him downstairs.

"What do you mean, stop? The house is on fire, Reid! Let's go!" Morgan shouted, but Spencer already had an idea in mind. Something just needed to click. He'd find the girl, no matter what.

Spencer stumbled out of the burning house towards the faint flashing lights of ambulances, fire engines, and police cars. It was hard to see anything in the thick smoke, not to mention he couldn't hear much over his constant hacking. It felt like his lungs and throat were on fire. They'd gotten the girl out though. He just hoped that she'd be okay.

"Oh my god, are you guys okay?"

JJ's voice was the first to greet him, Hotch, Morgan and the girl as they staggered towards safety. Spencer opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out but more coughing. He gave up on trying to talk and bent over, hands on his knees as he tried to regain air. He felt JJ's hand rubbing his back timidly as if she wasn't sure if she was hurting him. He appreciated the notion, and once he could get his breathing under control, Spencer straightened and put a hand on her own that rested on his side, wrapped around his back.

"Fine..." he managed to choke out at last. JJ's worried eyes looked him over, seeming to catch every scrape, bruise and burn.

"What'd you do? Walk into the fire?" she asked, noticing the not-so-subtle burns in the cloth of his pants at the back of his knees. Spencer craned his head to look over his shoulder to see the charred material, small holes formed where the flames had caught at the back of his leg.

"Pretty much." Morgan said, frowning at Spencer while baffled. "Not even a, 'Hey guys, he has a bomb'."

"Reid, that was important information." Hotch added after returning from making sure the girl was taken care of in an ambulance.

"And if I'd shared it, we might as well be dead right now." Spencer pointed out. Hotch shrugged, not willing to press any further. JJ looked between the three guys, clearly not getting what they meant, but she didn't seem to care about asking at the moment.

"I'm just glad you guys are okay."

Later at the BAU, Morgan was walking next to Spencer as they entered the bullpen.

"Hey, Reid." he said, his voice more serious than usual. Spencer tensed. Oh great... what was he planning now?

"Hmm?"

"I-" Morgan stopped mid sentence, seeming to try and find the words to say. Spencer was making his way to the round table room where his mother was hopefully still sitting and reading. He ignored the fact that Morgan was still hurrying to keep up beside him, words still trying to form on his lips.

Once Spencer got to the door of the round table room, reaching out for the handle, Morgan's thick muscle-toned arm stopped him. Spencer bumped into him and stopped, turning to Derek with his eyebrows raised in a mix of expectancy and confusion. Morgan's face was serious, his eyes dark. In the same way however, it seemed soft. Concerned, almost. Spencer pressed his lips together and readied for the lecture.

"I didn't know your mom was schizophrenic." Morgan said in a low voice. Reid sighed and looked down at the ground uncomfortably. He should've seen this coming.

"Well..." he said, pausing afterwards, not knowing what to say. "She is..." he plainly stated, fidgeting with his hands.

"It must be hard." Morgan said quietly. Spencer kept his eyes cast downwards and shrugged. He was aware of concerned eyes on him, courtesy of Morgan, but he didn't dare look up.

"Well, hey. If you ever... I don't know, need anything..."

"Yeah." Spencer said shortly, interrupting him. "Thanks."

He'd meant it too, but he wasn't quite in the mood for talking. Instead, Reid pushed past his arm and through the door, seeing his mom on the couch. He smiled while watching her engrossed in a book. Every time he saw her though, he always felt a pang of guilt course through him. So many times in the day, he'd tell himself he'd go visit her soon. Each time he told himself that however, he'd find some ridiculous reason not to, just so he wouldn't have to go through the hurt of seeing her locked up in the sanitarium he put her in. Spencer knew it was the best way, but that didn't help the way he felt sick just thinking about the day they dragged her away.

What he wasn't expecting was for her to be having one of her more calm episodes where she thought she was teaching 15th century literature again like she once did. Spencer had learned to just go along with it at this point.

She let him "attend her lecture", so he sat next to her on the couch and listened to her talk about the book. After the tiring case, it was nice to just relax.

"Now, many people will tell you it's not worth reading a book again, but Oscar Wilde said, 'If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all." his mother was carrying on about how many times she has read certain works and what the benefits were. Spencer closed his eyes and leaned his head back, taking a deep breath and trying to forget about the the disfigured Mr. Garner with bombs strapped around his waist.

"No sleeping in class!" he heard his mother reprimand him. Spencer groaned but smiled a bit, taking his times to open his eyes and lift his head up to see her disapproving eyes.

"Sorry ma'am." he said, chuckling a bit. Diana nodded and got back to lecturing to the "class" around them.

About an hour later, without any interruptions, the door to the round table room opened. Hotch came in with his eyebrows raised. His eyes fell upon Diana who continued lecturing. He looked confused for a moment, but he seemed to brush it off before turning to Spencer.

"I have the plane cleared to fly for Las Vegas if you'd like." he told him. Spencer looked over at his mother who was continuing to talk. Sighing, he knew she had to return. He felt awful all over again.

Spencer turned back and nodded to Hotch, a forced smile spreading across his lips while he mouthed 'Thank You'. Hotch nodded back and backed out of the threshold, just in time for Morgan to appear.

"Spencer?" Reid heard his mother say. She must've come back to reality. He'd never know when she would. Sometimes her episodes would go on for days, and sometimes only minutes. He could never predict it.

"Mom... You can go back to Las Vegas now." he told her calmly. Meanwhile, Morgan was entering the room and watching her curiously, as if he wasn't sure how to handle it. Spencer was used to this by now. When he was younger, no one knew how to handle his mother's condition. It was part of the reason he never told his team.

"Did you find the girl?" she asked him. Spencer smiled and put a hand on her shoulder, nodding.

"Yeah, mom. We found her." he said. She smiled and tilted her head.

"Good." she said. "Do I have to stay here anymore?"

"No, Mom. The plane's ready..."

"You know I hate planes!" she said, suddenly turning frightened. Spencer bit his lip and nodded, feeling guilt spread across his face.

"I know, but-"

"Spencer..." she said in a pleading voice, looking at him with begging eyes. He felt his chest tighten.

"I'll go with you. It'll be fine, I promise."

Diana seemed to think about this for a moment, letting the room fall into silence. Spencer fidgeted uncomfortably.

"Okay." she said. Spencer smiled sadly at her, standing up and taking her hand. He helped his mother up as more of his team eased in the room, all of them silent until JJ spoke up.

"It was great meeting you, Mrs. Reid." she said, extending her hand to shake his mother's. Diana smiled at her and shook her hand.

"As it was meeting you. Spencer won't stop talking about 'JJ said this' and 'JJ and I went and did this'." she said, smiling. Spencer felt his face heat up as he looked down at the ground. The team chuckled around him, but he didn't find it quite as funny as completely embarrassing.

"Thanks, mom." he muttered. He felt Morgan clap him on the back as he laughed, finding everything having to do with messing with Reid, funny.

Once everyone said their goodbyes, Spencer found himself in the jet with his mom in no time. She was nervously looking out the window, diverting her gaze from him. Spencer had expected this and brought along a book to read her for the ride there. He figured that since she always read to him, he could at least do the same to calm her nerves. The entire way there, she kept her eyes out the window. When they hit and turbulence she'd jump and when she was especially nervous, she'd fidget with her hands. Whenever she did, Spencer took her closest hand in his own so she knew he was there. He never stopped reading until they touched down. Instead of finding himself not wanting to face the unsettling feeling of seeing her, he found himself not wanting to let her go back. With his job and her condition however, he knew there was no other way.

"Don't you dare stop writing, Spencer." she said as they stood up to get off.

"I know, I won't." he promised.

"And for God's sake, will that job ever give you a break to come back home for a while?" she asked. Spencer shrugged and sighed.

"I don't know. I'll try my best." he said, and this time he meant it. She looked at him with a sad smile and put a hand on the side of his face.

"You're growing up so fast." she said. Spencer smiled and looked down at the ground shyly. "But your'e still too skinny." she added, making him roll his eyes. She pulled him into a hug and squeezed him tightly. Spencer moved his arms around her back and closed his eyes, remembering how this used to be the best part of his day during his childhood.

"Okay, mom." he said, a small smile still playing on his lips. It might have not been the visit he was expecting this week, but it was better than nothing. He just hoped he could keep his promise.


	7. Sleeping on the Jet

**Season 2: Episode 4**

The team always teased Spencer about "his" so-called couch. It was the one right by the doorway at the front of the plane, and he always claimed it before anyone else could. After long tiring cases, which ended up being pretty much every single one of them, he'd stretch out so no one else could sit on it and fall asleep so that he looked too peaceful for anyone to make him move.

Not today... Derek Morgan thought while approaching the plane that was waiting for them on the runway. He strode forward with his go back slung over his shoulder and a big cocky grin on his face. If Pretty Boy thought he was going to get there early enough to steal that seat, he was sadly mistaken.

Morgan moved up the steps leading to the door of the plane, taking in a deep breath of victory. It was thirty minutes until take-off. He couldn't possibly be here that early.

To his surprise, Derek was unfortunately wrong. Spencer was standing by the counter, holding his mug still on the counter while pouring a constant stream of steaming coffee. He didn't see Morgan yet, so Derek stood there frozen, swearing under his breath. How could he make it past Spencer quick enough to grab the couch before he made it there before him?

Deciding to just go for it, Derek readied himself to pounce. To his disappointment, Reid was finished pouring his coffee at that point and lifted his head up. He must've seen Morgan out of the corner of his eye, because he gaze snapped towards where he stood. They stared at each other with wide eyes and frozen expression for a good few seconds before something inside Morgan kicked him mentally. Get there before him...

All at once, Morgan broke out into a sprint and Spencer scrambled towards the couch. They both landed on the cushions, pushing and shoving with childish smiles on their faces.

"I was here first!"

"You snooze, you loose." Morgan grunted while trying to shove his younger colleage off. One think he liked about Reid was that he could take the teasing and messing around and either ignore it or play along.

Spencer landed a blow with his elbow in Morgan's ribs, causing him to loose his focus in trying to shove him off.

"Ow, hey! Keep you're little scrawny arms to yourself." Morgan teased him, trying to body check him off the couch.

"Just because I don't have logs for arms, doesn't mean..."

"Hey, hey, hey." JJ's voice interrupted from the doorway of the plane. Morgan and Reid froze, Morgan's shoulder still digging into Spencer's back, and Reid's converse shoes braced on the floor of the Jet, trying to keep himself planted on the couch with the weight of Morgan trying to shove him off.

"Jayge, tell him to get off. I was here first." Spencer complained, trying to get his elbow jabbed into Morgan's side again. Derek rolled his eyes, but had an amused smile on his face.

"Oh stop crying to Mommy. You weren't sitting on the couch, therefore you weren't here first." Morgan said, emphasizing the word "first" as he gave Spencer a big shove at the same time. Reid jerked forward, but was able to keep stable.

"Both of you, cut it out. If you can't share, none of you get it." JJ said, setting her bag down by a seat across the aisle way of the plane with an uninterested look on her face. Morgan finally lifted his weight from trying to push Spencer off the couch and relaxed his bulging muscles. He sat back on the couch as Spencer straightened himself out beside him.

"Fine. I get half, you get half." Derek said, retreating to his half and sinking down with his head resting on the back of the couch. Spencer "huffed" with frustration and curled up on the other end, putting his head on the arm of the couch and pulling his knees to his chest while lying on his side.

"Fine, but I'm a kicker." he said, making Morgan chuckle and shake his head. He didn't reply, but instead went over to the kitchenette where he'd left his bag to pull out his MP3 and headphones to block out the sound of everyone and try to fall asleep. Once he sat back down, he glanced over to see Spencer already burying his face in his arms crossed over the arm of the couch, his eyes slowly closing. Derek shook his head, a half smile reaching across his face. Sometimes the kid drove him crazy, but you had to love him.

The rest of the team eventually all boarded the plane at one point. He even got a congratulations from Elle for getting even half of "Spencer's couch". In the next twenty minutes or so, the plane took off, soaring into the sky with Quantico, Virginia as its destination.

Derek was starting to drift to sleep to the sound of his music playing in his ears when he felt something hit his arm from the side. He opened an eye lazily to see Spencer stretching out a bit, one of his legs kicking him in the arm. Morgan rolled his eye and pushed Spencer's foot away, back to his side of the couch. When he was sure Reid wouldn't move again, he settled back down and closed his eyes, drifting off again.

That was, until he felt something nudge him in the rib cage. Morgan sighed with frustration, ripping his headphones off his head and turning to see Spencer groaning in his sleep and stretching out to kick him again. Watching him, Morgan could see the smallest of smirks crawling up on Spencer's "sleeping" face. Derek shook his head.

"You little bastard..." he muttered so only Reid could hear. He could actually see Spencer trying to hold back laughs, irritating Morgan even more. He wasn't going to give in though. Instead, he pushed Spencer away back to his side of the couch and closed his eyes, readjusting his headphones again. He guessed this is what having a little brother felt like.


	8. Afraid of the Dark

**Season 2: Episode 6**

Spencer yawned and entered the bullpen. His feet were hurting just from walking around on the case all day and night. He was so glad it was over. The whole suspicion of the house at the top of the hill being haunted and guarded by something that ate children was interesting at first, but it had started to really freak him out, especially after disclosing how he wasn't fond of the dark.

Speaking of creepy, it was strange how the entire room was empty. The silence was so loud it was deafening. Frowning, Reid kept on until he reached his desk. Lifting the strap of his satchel over his shoulder, he set it down on his chair so he could gather up the files and paper on his desk. He couldn't shake the feeling of someone watching him, however. He supposed it was only the case still giving him the creeps.

Spencer sifted the papers together in a line and stuffed them into his bags. He still had to finish the case report and look over a few more files from other cases he was studying just in his free time. It always ended up helping somehow in another case.

Once he was packed up, Spencer slung his bag over his shoulder once again. He looked around the bullpen, feeling his heart rate pick up a bit. What was going on? Where was everyone? He distinctly remembered the rest of the team walking behind him after they exited the jet. Where were they now?

Deciding to take a look around, Spencer started in the round table room. Empty. He frowned and looked over at Hotch's office door. It was closed and he guessed it was vacant, but it was worth a shot.

Spencer approached the door and knocked before grasping the handle and pushing it open.

"Hotch?" he called to an empty room. Nothing there either. "What-" Spencer began to mutter. He was stopped cold in the middle of his sentence unexpectedly. Every source of light in the bullpen and all the rooms around him went dark. Reid was bathed in black, his surroundings invisible to him. His heart nearly stopped in that moment. His first thought was of course Morgan, but he couldn't help but be freaked out a bit.

"Very funny Morgan!" he called to an empty room. At least, he hoped it was an empty room. Everything was so dark that he couldn't even see his hand if he held it an inch away from his face. Even the shades were closed over the window of Hotch's office so that no moonlight would shine through. There was nothing but pure darkness as far as he was concerned.

"Morgan, come on!" he said, his voice cracking a bit at the end in fear. This was ridiculous. He was an FBI agent. He couldn't be afraid of the dark any longer.

"Morgan, cut it out!" he called again. There was not a sound in response. Sighing, Reid shut Hotch's door with the hand still wrapped around the cold metal door handle. The click of it closing rang out as the only sound in the air. The silence almost made it seem so much louder.

Spencer decided to try to get to the other side of the room. He didn't know why that would do anything. If the power was out, so were the elevators. Worst case scenario, he could use the stairs to a different floor to see if other floors were out of power. At least there'd be people there too.

Taking a step, Spencer held out his hands in front of him. He really hoped he didn't hit anything unwanted.

Reid tried to approximate where the steps down to the ground level of the bullpen were, taking caution as he slowly moved his was across the floor like a blind man, feeling around for the railing or something to hold onto. He finally felt the cool metal of the rail underneath his hand, so he gripped it gently, using it to guide himself forward in hopefully the right direction.

Spencer didn't know what was going on or how he was going to deal with this, but he was feeling a bit more comfortable. Why should he be freaked out? The power probably just went out for a bit. He wished he could fully believe that, but with all they see, it was hard not to think of the endless possibilities of the horrors that could be waiting for him. By now however, Spencer guessed it was okay to let his guard down just a little.

That was a mistake. Suddenly, Spencer bumped into a tall mass in front of him. Warm, clothed... breathing. It was a person. Reid yelped and stumbled backwards, not knowing who was there or where he was going. His back came into contact with another standing body behind him, this one much smaller and daintier. Spencer made a strange sound that was a cross between a yell and a whimper before stumbling to his left into yet another body.

Right when he thought he might just stand still and wait to die, the lights came back on. The room was filled with Morgan's familiar booming and mocking laughter. The bodies around him were his team, save for Gideon and Hotch. Spencer's heart was still racing and his breathing was still faster than normal, but altogether it was a relief to be back in the light, even if it was to let Morgan cackle hysterically at the look on Reid's face.

Anger filled Spencer's body and before he knew it, he took off after Morgan who had sensed it about to happen. Derek turned and fled down the stairs into the bullpen where he weaved around desks and chairs to get away from Spencer who was close behind.

"Damn it, Morgan! I knew it was you!" he shouted. He couldn't help but laugh a bit though. He never let Derek's teasing get to him. He knew Morgan was really fond of him for some reason, and he had an equal amount of respect for the guy as well. Sometimes he drove him crazy, however.

"Oh, stop playing, Reid. You were terrified!" Morgan said, laughing gleefully at the thought. He was now on one side of the desk and Spencer was on the other. Everytime he'd move one way though, Derek would move another and they'd be stuck in the same position on opposite sides of the desk. This wasn't going anywhere, anytime soon.

"How about I buy you a drink and we call it truce?" Morgan offered, holding out a hand over the desk.

"Spencer, I'm sorry. Derek roped me into it." JJ said from where she stood above them on the elevated area around the bullpen. Reid rolled his eyes playfully.

"Yeah, yeah." he smiled at her. She smiled back guiltily, as did Penelope and Elle. "You were all in on it."

"Come on, kid. Drinks?" Derek was still trying to persuade him, his arm still reached out. Spencer twisted his face in thought, like he was thinking really hard about it.

"Mmmm... I'm not much of a drinker." he said, making Morgan roll his eyes.

"Fine. A lemonade then." he said sarcastically. Reid chuckled and shrugged.

"Deal. And I don't shake hands." he reminded Morgan. Derek lifted his hands in defense and nodded.

"Alright, alright. Fair deal." he said, walking around the table and slapping Reid on the back.

"I- I wasn't scared, by the way." he said, making everyone around him chuckle. He couldn't help but smile a bit too. He was honestly scared out of his witts.

"You regretting letting Morgan know your weakness?" JJ asked as the team fell in step together, walking out of the bullpen and towards the elevators to hit the nearest bar for drinks.

"I think that'd be an understatement." Reid said, chuckling. He didn't know what he was thinking. As soon as the words slipped out of his mouth that he was afraid of the dark, he knew it'd been a mistake around Morgan.

"What's might Morgan's big fear?" Garcia asked, turning everyone's attention to Derek while they stopped to wait for the elevator. Morgan shook his head.

"Nuh-uh. I'm not sharing that with any of you people." he rejected.

"You know, research has shown how people develop fears after first-hand experience of an aversive even such as getting stung by a bee or being burned by something hot. In acquiring these fears, a process known as fear conditioning, the brain's amygdala..."

"Keep talking, and I take that lemonade back." Morgan interrupted. Spencer stopped mid-sentence and smiled. He did that a lot. Once he started talking, he couldn't stop.

"Right, sorry."

The team carried on joking with each other for the rest of the night. It was nights like these that Spencer was so grateful for his friends and for the fact that he worked with all of them. It was just a bit easier to forget the case they'd just had and the horrors they'd seen. Although one could never really erase that from their memory, especially an eidetic memory, moments like this really went a long way.


	9. Comic Con

**Season 2: Episode 8**

"I'l be right back." Hotch announced. Spencer sat next to him, cards in hand in the middle of a game of Gin with Hotch and Jayge. He glanced over to see Aaron stand up with means to walk to the bathroom. Before he walked down the aisle of the jet however, he turned to Spencer to make a point to say,

"Don't cheat."

Spencer acted appalled that Hotch would even say something like that to him, turning his palms upward in defense. The Unit Chief gave him one last warning look before turning and walking away. Spencer raised an eyebrow suspiciously and moved his hand forward to lift Hotch's abandoned cards of the table to take in what each one read. Having an eidetic memory allowed him to memorize each one in the matter of a second.

Reid raised his eyebrows in interest at Hotch's hand of cards, lowering it back down onto the table. He heard JJ chuckle from the seat across the table from him. Spencer disregarded her. He was from Vegas. Cheating was in his blood.

"J.J, a lot of Science Fiction's deeper than you might think." he said, looking over to see her engrossed in examining her cards, her expression straight.

"Mmm-hmm." she said, sounding dull and completely uninterested. Spencer took that as his normal cue to keep babbling on.

"I mean, there are some genuine human emotions-" he began, ready to go on a giant speech about why Science Fiction isn't just for science geeks.

"Yeah... Let me save you the time, Reid. I am never going to Comic Con with you."

Spencer felt hi lips turning up into a smile. Busted. She always knew when he was trying to get her to do something. He shrugged and held up his hands defensively, clearing his throat uncomfortably and trying to find a way to cover up the fact that those were his exact intentions.

"Ahem. I-" he began to try to spit out a cover up. Before he could however, JJ interrupted him in an exhilarated voice.

"Gin!" she exclaimed, slapping her cards down on the table face up. Spencer raised his eyebrows in disbelief. He highly doubted that.

Still trying to awkwardly cover up his attempt to get JJ to go to Comic Con, he coughed into his fist and looked at JJ like he didn't believe her. She laughed in happy surprise at the sudden win, obviously amazed to the point of near disbelief knowing she had beaten Spencer who was notorious for never losing a game.

Spencer frowned and reached forward, taking her cards in his hand.

"What, you don't trust me?" he asked, smiling and laughing at him. Spencer raised his eyebrow as if to say that's exactly what he thought.

"Uhhh..." he murmured, looking over her cards.

"Come on." she said, still humored at the fact that she beat him.

"Let's jut make sure." he said, sifting through each card. "Eight..." he muttered to himself while looking over the numbers and symbols. After looking over the cards, Spencer was disappointed to find that she had in fact won. He was going to make sure he didn't make this a habit.

"It's fun beating a genius." JJ said, still all smiles while mocking him. Spencer chuckled at her persistence in making him regret his loss as much as possible.

"Genius Doctor Reid let you win." he joked. JJ laughed and rolled her eyes playfully while Spencer arranged the cards into one stack.

"Let's play again." she said, excitedly. If she thought she was going to keep beating him, she was sadly mistaken.

"Um, If I remember correctly you're borderline retarded." Spencer said, bringing up an old inside joke that came up at a bar about a week ago. JJ laughed at this, flipping her hair over her shoulder in mock arrogance.

"Okay, tell you what." Spencer said, shuffling the cards with his hands, mixing them up best he could. He always made sure they were thoroughly randomized. He was very serious about his card games.

"Hmm?" JJ inquired, raising an eyebrow to await his question.

"We'll play again, but if I win, you have to go to Comic Con with me." Spencer said, a mischievous smile crawling up on his face. JJ's smile faltered a bit. She bit her lip and her eyes wandered off in thought as she considered his offer. Reid smiled, knowing what she would pick. Jayge was competitive. She always was, always will be. There was no way she was going to pass off a challenge, especially after her morale was high since she'd just won for the last time.

"Deal." she said, her face the same JJ determined face that Spencer knew so well. His lips turned up into a smile that he couldn't help. It was her funeral.

A week and a half later, JJ was pouting in the middle of Spencer's kitchen. Her arms were crossed over her body tightly, as if they'd protect her from what was yet to come. Spencer leaned over his counter on the other side, his arms cross over the surface and his face smug. He was usually the nice and sweet one, but after JJ had tried rubbing her victory in Gin in his face, Reid was greatly enjoying this.

"You aren't really going to make me do this, are you?" she asked, her big eyes staring back at his pleadingly. Spencer chuckled and shrugged.

"Hey, it's your fault you thought you could keep a winning streak against me in cards." he said. JJ rolled her eyes but smiled a bit. She stood and watched him for a moment, obviously trying not to smile. It didn't take long before she broke.

"Fine. I better not see anyone I know, though." she warned. Jayge wasn't even talking about Comic Con as much as she was talking about what Spencer was making her wear. It was beautiful, if they lived centuries ago in medieval times. He claimed it was a copy of Daenerys's dress from some super specific episode in Game of Thrones as he went on to explain exactly what happened in that episode. She'd toned most of it out, but that wouldn't protect her against the dress that he just so suddenly added to the end of the bet they'd made, and she had lost.

"It's a huge convention. Hundreds of thousands of-"

"Weirdos walking around. Yeah, I know, Spence." she said, nudging him lightly as they walked out the door and into his apartment complex hallway.

"Hey!" he protested, smiling. "We prefer oddballs."

JJ laughed and waited for him to lock his door. The locked clicked and Spencer shoved his keys into the pocket of his suit jacket. Of course he'd dress up like Dr. Who, who was a lot less eye attracting that JJ's elaborate dress. She'd get him back for this somehow.

"Shall we go, my lady?" he asked, smirking as he glanced down at her fidgeting with her costume. JJ sighed and saw his arm stretched out for her to take, old fashioned way. He was being a pain lately, but he never failed to be the same sweetheart she knew.

"I guess..." she grumbled, taking his arm and letting him guide them down the stairs and out of the building.

"I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up having fun, Jayge."

JJ huffed, but smiled just a bit. At least it was making him happy.

It didn't take to long to get downtown to where the convention was being held. It was hard to miss. There were people dressed in outlandish garb everywhere on the streets. The building where it was held had humongous banners hanging from the front with large letters reading "Comic Con". Spencer grew more and more excited the closer they got. She was afraid he'd get so distracted by looking outside the window in wonder that he'd crash the car.

"Maybe I should have driven." JJ said, interrupting one of Spencer's long explanations of the first and second of the Spider-Man movies.

"No, no. I'm fine." he said. "So anyway, the third one is coming out next year and it's said to be even greater than the first and second. It's only in..." Spencer paused, figuring out the math of time he had to wait to see the third Spider-Man.

"Seven months, two weeks, and three days!" he said within a second of thought. JJ laughed at how excited he was. Usually he was so quiet, but it was fun to see his more outgoing side. Maybe this would be fun.


	10. Emily

**Season 2: Episode 10**

Spencer blinked his eyes open. For a moment, he was surprised. This was definitely not his bed. Where was he? And most importantly, who was the person gently shaking his shoulder?

"Reid..." a familiar voice said gently, coaxing him out of sleep. Spencer squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them again, allowing his surrounding to clear up from their previous blurry state. He was lying on his stomach, his arms crossed over his head and his head resting on top of his tangle of arms. He was facing a white wall of fabric that he realized was the back of a couch. The couch on the jet to be exact.

Turning to face the other way, Spence realized that it was Emily, the newest addition to their team who was gently shaking him awake. Out the window past her shoulder he saw that they were no longer thousands of feet in the air. They were landed, the plane still and silent with no trace of Gideon who also used to be on the ride back to Virginia with them.

"Hmm?" he murmured unintelligibly, squinting against the bright natural light filtering in through the window. She chuckled and straightened from her position bending over the couch to wake him.

"We're here." she said, looking slightly amused by the way he was only half awake and aware. She crossed her arms over her chest and smiled at him, waiting for him to get up.

"Oh, right." he said, pushing himself to sit up on the edge of the couch. He rubbed his eyes and yawned, taking a moment to stretch out and find motivation to even just stand. He was exhausted. It had been a long, frustrating, and nail-biting case. It wore them out just trying to get information out of the terrorists with information on the next bombing. They'd managed to stop the entire heist before anyone could get hurt, but the case still left them spent.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Emily asked, sitting on the space next to him. Spencer raised an eyebrow curiously and glanced over at her. He wasn't expecting this.

"Yeah, of course." he said, dropping his arms that had been stretching out, back to his sides. Emily looked down at the ground, seeming to think of what to say. Spencer watched her, profiling the best he could. Her demeanor said she was often unsure, and cautious around the team. It was if she feared she wouldn't be enough. He knew just by watching her and listening to the way she talked, she desperately wanted to fit in and would work extremely hard to do a good job for the team.

"Prentiss, you're doing great here." he said as she opened her mouth to speak, interrupting what she was about to say. He didn't need to hear though. He already knew. "You have no need to worry."

Emily smiled and looked at him in disbelief.

"Wow." she laughed, shaking her head. "You guys are good."

Spencer smiled too, chuckling a bit. "But, really. They seem intimidating at first but I promise, they like you." he assured her. Prentiss looked back at Reid with an expression that looked relieved and grateful for what he said. She nodded her head and tilted it to the side.

"Thank you." she said sincerely. "And you can call me Emily." she added, breaking into a smile. Spencer smiled too, her smile being contagious. A question had been clawing at his mind however, his consciousness begging for it to be answered.

"Why'd you come to me out of the whole team?" he asked. Emily shrugged and stood, waiting for him to join her. With a sigh, wishing he could just curl up and fall asleep again, Spencer pushed himself up onto his feet, joining Emily as they walked to the exit of the jet.

"You're sweet." she said plainly, making Spencer blush.

"And a genius." he added jokingly. Emily laughed and nodded.

"And a genius." she repeated. "Are you sure though? Gideon really seems to not like me." she said, smile faltering as they walked down the steps and out into the open air.

"He's not bad, trust me. He just doesn't like change." Spencer explained. "Old fashioned."

"Yeah I can tell. He's scary good at chess."

Spencer chuckled and rolled his eyes a bit. No matter what he did, he could never beat him. "Think outside the box", Gideon would say. Reid didn't know how. He was programmed to look at facts and strategies. He'd gotten frustrated enough to give up and take a nap on the plane today, just for an example.

"Yes. Yes he is."

Spencer didn't know Emily too well yet, but he believed what he said. She hadn't reason to worry. She'd fit in perfectly.


	11. Out With Garcia

**Season 2: Episode 11**

"Are you okay, Junior G-Man?" a voice came from behind Spencer as he finished scrubbing Nathan's blood off his hands. He didn't want this. He didn't want to end a stressful day with even more stress from saving him after he slashed his wrists. He hadn't realized at first why he felt so responsible for the kid, but like he told Garcia later, he knew how Nathan felt to a degree. He hadn't asked to get a mind like he got. He wasn't complaining, he loved to memorize things, but it could be just as much as a burden.

"Yeah." Spencer answered shortly. He wasn't so sure it was true. His heart was still racing at a million beats per second and he was slightly shaking. Garcia looked at him with concern, obviously not believing him.

"I don't suppose you're still up to go somewhere? Get your mind off things?"

Spencer shrugged.

"I don't think I really can stop thinking about it but, yeah... I don't really want to be alone right now." he admitted, shyly looking down at his feet. This seemed to please Garcia. He knew she loved when she had the opportunity to help anyone. It was his favorite part about her: her selflessness.

"Alright, I know a few joints around town." she said, holding out her arm for him to hold onto for her to guide them to her car. Spencer smiled at the notion and linked arms with hers as they started towards where they had parked before the incident had happened.

"We're going to head over to Smashers." she said. "Old fashioned bar kind of thing, the classic. You'll like it. It's not to wild." Garcia explained as they climbed into the car. Spencer nodded and silently sat, looking out the window while she revved up the car and began backing out. "Unless you do want wild. Then, Dr. Reid, I can hook you up big time."

Spencer chuckled and looked over at her.

"Umm..."

"I'm kidding with you, boy wonder." she said, smiling through her bright pink lipstick. They pulled out onto the dark road of dazzling lights from buildings, cars and street lights. It was Friday, and around the DC area was busy with nightlife around now. The only thing was, nightlife also included robbers and prostitutes at ever dark corner and alley. Everything Spencer saw after working for the FBI for a while was a threat.

It took only about five minutes to get there. It was a small brick building with cars parked around it on all sides. It looked pretty busy, but not unbearably so. The lights were dim from inside, Spencer could already tell. The soft playing of classic rock could be faintly heard in the night air and it smelled like french fries, making Spencer realize how hungry he was.

"Alright, come on." Garcia said, popping open her door and hopping out. Spencer got out of the car much less enthusiastically, still feeling the weight of the past events weigh heavily on his shoulders.

"Get a little pep in your step. Maybe we'll find you a nice lady friend."

"Garcia!" he exclaimed, smiling with a surprised look on his face. She was completely insane sometimes.

"Alright, I'll behave. But sometimes it's good to come out of that cute little shell you keep yourself in."

Spencer smiled and shook his head while following his friend in. As soon as they pushed through the doors, the atmosphere changed. The lights were dark, but almost in a comforting and homey way. The music filled his ears and thankfully blocked out some of his thoughts and memories that kind spinning through his mind. There were people at most of the tables, a few playing pool across the room and some gathered around the TV to watch the football game.

Garcia instantly made her way to two stools at the bar without hesitation, obviously knowing exactly what she wanted. Spencer just followed her like a lost puppy, brushing his hair behind his ear and out of his face. Penelope patted the stool beside her and he sat, awkwardly crossing his arms on top of the counter and looking around timidly.

"You don't go out often, do you?" she asked, watching him with amusement. Spencer smiled a bit and shook his head.

"No, not really."

"Penelope!" a different voice said before Garcia could say anything else to Reid. An particularly busty and curvy woman of African-American descent approached them from behind the counter, right in the middle of cleaning out a beer glass with a wet cloth. Spencer observed Garcia as she beamed at the sight of the woman. They obviously knew each other.

"Jayla, this is my friend, Spencer. Spencer, this is my friend Jayla." she said excitedly, looking between the two. Jayla looked at Spencer and smiled and he politely smiled back.

"Nice to meet you sweetie. I'd shake your hand but I'm all kinds of covered in water and soap." she said. Spencer nodded and bit his lip, not sure what to say.

"Spencer works with me over in Quantico." Garcia explained.

"Ohhh, an FBI boy. So what brings a nice handsome young man like yourself down her tonight?" she asked, glancing up at Spencer before putting the glass back on the shelf that held identical glasses. Spencer blushed and shrugged, looking over at Penelope.

"Hard day, I guess." he said, clearing his throat.

"Well we have plenty of options to cheer you up. I really suggest our lime tequilas. We have a special tonight."

"We'll take two of those on me." Garcia immediately said. Jayla nodded and walked off to the other side of the counter, leaving Pen and Spencer once more.

"Garcia, as much as I appreciate the offer..."

"I know, I know. You don't usually drink. A few won't hurt." she said. "Want to play pool?"

Spencer knew she was trying to distract him, but the promise of a challenge was actually quite working. He smiled and got off the stool, glancing over to where the men had finished up their game, leaving it vacant.

"Alright, but I have to warn you, I've never lost."

"What aren't you perfect at, Spencer Reid?" she asked amused. They made their way to the table as Spencer thought about that.

"Sports... Physical Activity... Sports."

"Well then I guess that's one thing we have in common."

After three won games of pool, a lot of fries, and four drinks, Spencer was actually feeling a bit dizzy. It wasn't a lot to drink for most people, but he rarely drank alcohol, and not to mention he was as skinny as a twig.

"You had the big glasses and everything?" Garcia asked while they were in the midst of a conversation about "little Spencer" as Garcia called it when talking about his childhood. Spencer took a sip of his drink and nodded.

"Without them, I'd walk into things face first."

"I didn't know you had contacts."

"Every nerd needs his bad eyesight, right?" he joked, making Penelope laugh.

"Aw, You're not a nerd."

"It's alright, I've accepted it. And Morgan reminds me everyday."

"Don't listen to him. He's jealous that you can outdo him in everything."

Spencer raised his eyebrows.

"Except looks. And girls. And abs."

"Mmm, I do love those abs." Garcia said, making Spencer shake his head and chuckle.

"What's with you guys, by the way?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. Garcia frowned in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"You flirt relentlessly and you guys seem close, but the team can't figure out what you are." Spencer tried to explain. Garcia smiled and rolled her eyes.

"We'll never be anything more than friends." she said, as if it were obvious. Spencer frowned. He didn't get it.

"Why not?"

"Because I love him to much as a friend to ever ruin that." she said. Reid just shrugged and tried to understand. "It's like you and JJ."

"Ohhhhhhhhh..."

"Yeahhhhh..." she laughed.

About half of an hour later, they decided to head out. Garcia ended up being a lot less tipsy than Spencer was, so she resumed to drive him home. They talked about Dr. Who the whole ride there, Garcia laughing at the way he was starting to slur his words into completely different phrases.

"Okay, straight to bed. I don't want to be worrying about you all night." she said as she walked Spencer up to his complex door. Spencer turned and bit his bottom lip, trying to think of the right words to say.

"Garcia?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you... for doing this." he told her. Penelope beamed and rushed forward to hug him, encasing his body in her arms. Spencer stumbled a bit, but hugged her back, feeling a whole lot better than he had a couple hours of go.

"Anytime. Don't dread too much over the Nathan incident. He'll be okay." she assured him. Spencer nodded and pulled away to watch Garcia smile at him one last time and make her way to her car.

"Can you get up the stairs alright?"

"I'm not that bad." he said, smiling.

"Okay, okay. Love you!" she called out before she shut herself in her car, the engine roaring to life. Spencer waved at her as she pulled out and she honked the horn in return. After her car drove out of sight he stepped inside the building and made his way up to his flat. The night couldn't been a whole lot worse if it weren't for Garcia. He was glad he let her drag him out.


	12. Kidnapped

**Season 2: Episode 14**

Spencer felt his head throbbing in pain. He could feel a sticky substance on the side of his forehead and knew immediately that it was blood. He remembered driving to Tobias Hankle's house with JJ and seeing all of the monitors through his window and finding out he was actually the unsub. He remembered him and JJ splitting up, a stupid idea on his part, and how he heard the unsubs talking in the corn field… well, now Spencer was thinking there was only one.

"Shoot him, he's a Satist." Tobias said in a deeper voice than he had used previously at the door. Then with another voice he'd try to refuse, sounding afraid. So they were dealing with one unsub split into at least two personalities. More to the point, Spencer was dealing with one unsub split into at least two personalities. And he was sadly losing.

At this point, Reid was bathed in darkness, an acute ringing in his ears. No matter how hard he tried, his eyes wouldn't open. He couldn't move at all. The only other sounds were distant mumbling that sounded as if someone was talking underwater. It sounded like Tobias's personalities were arguing with each other.

"Now look what you've done, boy. Now you have to kill him." The deep voice was saying.

"He didn't do anything!"

"Only getting the job down halfway. You've always been a sissy."

"I'll- I'll take him with us."

The more and more they argued, the clearer and louder their speech was sounding. Spencer heard the last sentence and had a renewed vigor to wake up out of this partial unconscious state. He willed his arms to move, his legs, his eyes, anything. The most he got was fluttering his eyelids, the dark skies and corn stalks towering above him. Spencer groaned and shut his eyes again, not having the strength to do anything else.

"They're coming. Don't just stand there!"

They're coming? Who was coming? His team? Spencer prayed that they found him in time, but his hope started slowly diminishing as he felt rough arms slide under his own and yank him up. A sharp pain erupted in his skull, dizziness taking over and all of his senses fading away. He could just barely feel his body be pulled over the rough ground of mounts of dry grass and fallen corn stalks. His legs dragged behind him and his head lolled back, but no matter how much he willed himself to get out of this situation, his strength decreased more and more with every passing second. He was getting dragged further away from his team and safety, going who knew where. What if he never returned? What if this was it? He was going to die at 23 and never live the rest of his life.

Panic set in, but he had never felt so helpless. All Spencer could do was just lie limp and let himself be dragged off with the sound of his friends shouting his name some ways off.

"Spencer! Reid, where are you, kid?" he heard Morgan's voice. He was too far off though, and sounded to be moving in a different direction.

_Not that way! Morgan…_

He thought as he felt himself being roughly yanked up further. They were on different terrain now, a gravel road. It must have been the same one him and JJ drove on to get to this hellish place. Once Spencer felt only gravel and could sense no more corn field around him, he was dropped harshly on the ground. He moaned and tried to blink his eyes open. He got a little movement, but not enough to fully open his eyes.

The sound of a car door opening filled the air around them.

_No, no, no, no…_ Spencer thought.

He couldn't do anything however, as he felt himself being hoisted up, one of his arms hitting the frame of the car and sending more pain throughout him. Tobias threw him onto the floor of what seemed to by the front seat, but before Spencer could figure it out, his head hit a hard surface, knocking him out for good.


End file.
